Nova Scotia’s ailing LifeFlight air ambulance service will soon have two new Sikorsky 76 C+ helicopters, the government announced Thursday.
The LifeFlight helicopter Nova Scotia currently uses was restricted from landing on rooftop helipads on hospitals in the province in April, after it was determined the Sikorsky S-76A helicopter didn’t have the certification to land on the helipads in densely populated areas.
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Since then, rather than landing atop the Halifax Infirmary and IWK Health Centre in Halifax and the Digby General Hospital in Digby, the helicopters have landed on ground-landing pads. Passengers were then transported to hospitals via ambulance.
The government has no cost estimate yet for the lease agreement for the two helicopters. Once the agreement is signed for the new air ambulances, they should arrive in Nova Scotia in about six months.
In a release, Health Minister Leo Glavine said the government considered all of the options available to them before making their decision.
READ MORE: LifeFlight helicopters pulled from servicing hospital rooftops by choice: Canadian Helicopters
“I’m confident that by amending our existing agreement with Canadian Helicopters Limited, we will be able to replace our LifeFlight helicopter safely, quickly and at a good value.”
Nova Scotia’s current LifeFlight helicopter was built in 1980. The new helicopters will come from the provider of the province’s current air ambulance, Canadian Helicopters.
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